7b 

85-B 

26913 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF 

TAPESTRIES 

ASSEMBLED,  ARRANGED  AND  CATALOGUED 
BY  GEORGE  LELAND  HUNTER 


During  the  first  two  weeks  and  the 
last  two  weeks  of  the  Exhibition, 
free  lecture-promenades  by  special 
appointment,  when  Mr.  Hunter  will 
personally  conduct  visitors  through 
the  galleries,  explaining  the  history 
and  artistic  significance  of  the  dif- 
ferent tapestries. 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 

OCTOBER  5th  TO  DECEMBER  1st  INCLUSIVE 
1918 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 
in  2014 


https://archive.org/details/loanexhibitionofOOhunt 


INTRODUCTION 


ESPECIALLY  great  at  the  present  time  is  the  prac- 
tical and  patriotic  value  of  an  exhibition  of 
tapestries.  Under  war  conditions  the  art  side  of 
American  industries  has  begun  to  flourish  as  never  before. 
Damasks,  brocades  and  velvets,  chintzes  and  cretonnes 
and  wall  papers  that  we  used  to  import  we  now  produce 
for  ourselves,  and  even  export. 

But  if  we  are  to  continue  to  hold  our  American  mar- 
kets after  the  war,  and  gain  others  in  the  face  of  renewed 
European  competition,  we  must  continue  to  elevate  the 
standards  of  our  art  industries  and  learn  to  rival  even  the 
French  in  matters  of  style  and  taste.  The  consecration 
to  military  service  of  men  of  military  age  renders  all  the 
more  difficult,  but  also  all  the  more  vital,  the  task  imposed 
upon  the  rest  of  us. 

To  those  who  by  their  generosity  have  made  possible 
this  extraordinary  exhibition  of  tapestries  at  The  Cleve- 
land Museum  of  Art,  the  city,  the  state  and  the  country 
are  deeply  indebted.  For  tapestries  more  than  any  other 
form  of  decorative  art  have  the  power  to  inspire  archi- 
tects, decorators,  designers,  students,  teachers,  manu- 
facturers, and  the  public  to  appreciation  of  what  good 
taste  really  is,  and  to  the  creation  and  acquisition  of 
better  things. 

Tapestries  have  a  triple  excellence.  They  possess  not 
only  the  picture  interest  of  photographs  and  paintings,  but 
also  the  story  interest  of  novels  and  romances,  and  the 
texture  interest  of  damasks,  velvets  and  brocades,  em- 
broideries and  Oriental  rugs. 

Tapestries  need  only  to  be  seen  to  be  appreciated. 
They  are  a  form  of  art  easy  to  understand.  They  do  not 
require  the  development  of  an  esoteric  sense  to  be  thrilled 
by  their  wonderful  qualities. 

But  it  is  necessary  to  regard  them  from  the  tapestry 
point  of  view.  For  the  tapestry  point  of  view  and  the 
paint  point  of  view  are  diametrically  opposed.  The  quali- 
ties that  distinguish  most  great  tapestries  are  not  those 
that  they  share  with  paintings,  but  those  that  differentiate 


4  THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 

them  from  paintings.  In  other  words,  of  tapestries  the 
most  characteristic  part  is  the  texture. 

Texture  is  what  makes  tapestries  the  fundamental  wall 
decoration.  Their  surface  consists  of  horizontal  ribs  cov- 
ered with  fine  vertical  weft  threads  that  combine  into 
strong  spires  of  color  called  hatchings.  So  that  their  fun- 
damental lines,  Hke  those  of  architecture,  are  horizontal 
and  vertical,  and  not  approximately  so,  but  exactly  so, 
true  to  the  plumb  line.  This  is  why  tapestries  cling  to 
the  walls  of  a  room  decoratively  and  architecturally,  while 
paintings  have  to  be  fenced  in  to  keep  them  from  falling  off. 

Tapestry  is  a  broad  word.  In  its  broadest  sense  it 
includes  all  the  fabrics  used  to  cover  the  walls  and  floors 
of  houses.  In  its  broadest  sense  it  includes  not  only  the 
upholstery  and  drapery  products  of  the  hand  loom  and 
the  power  loom,  but  also  carpets  and  rugs,  embroideries 
and  leathers,  cloths  painted  and  printed  and  stenciled. 
In  the  narrowest  sense  it  is  restricted  exclusively  to  the 
pictured  webs  of  *'high  warp"  and  *'low  warp''  looms, 
looms  that  are  vastly  simpler  than  the  ordinary  hand 
loom,  still  using  the  bobbin  instead  of  the  shuttle  to  con- 
vey the  weft  in  its  passage  back  and  forth  between  the 
warps. 

Primitive  tapestries  have  been  woven  by  many  primi- 
tive peoples.  Material  evidence  we  have  of  this  in  the 
European  and  American  museum  collections  of  ancient 
Coptic  and  Peruvian  textiles,  and  also  in  the  Oriental 
kelims,  Tunisian  blankets,  Mexican  scrapes  and  Navajo 
rugs  so  familiar  to  most  of  us.  Even  the  very  beautiful 
Chinese  silk  tapestries  must  be  classed  among  the  primi- 
tives. 

Practically  all  the  world's  great  tapestries  that  sur- 
vive —  tapestries  of  the  type  made  famous  by  Arras  in 
the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries;  by  Brussels  in  the 
sixteenth  and  seventeenth;  by  the  Gobelins  in  the  seven- 
teenth and  since  —  are  French  or  Flemish,  or  French  and 
Flemish,  and  were  woven  in  Flanders  or  northern  France. 
Those  made  in  Italy  and  Germany  and  England  were  for 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


5 


the  most  part  the  work  of  errant  Flemish  weavers,  and 
apt  to  be  inferior  in  weave  and  dye. 

Of  the  great  tapestries  of  antiquity,  of  ancient  Greece 
and  Rome,  we  have  only  literary  evidence,  principally 
Homer  and  Ovid.  From  the  former  we  learn  that  both 
Helen  and  Penelope  were  weavers  of  tapestry.  Of  Helen, 
Homer  says: 

Here  in  the  palace  at  her  loom  she  found, 
The  golden  web  her  own  sad  story  crowned. 
The  Trojan  wars  she  weaved,  herself  the  prize, 
And  the  dire  triumphs  of  her  fatal  eyes; 

and  Ovid,  in  his  Metamorphoses,  describes  thrillingly 
and  also  with  great  technical  detail  the  tapestry-weaving 
contest  between  the  mortal  Arachne  and  the  goddess  Pal- 
las, the  latter  picturing  vividly  and  wonderfully  the  Gods 
in  Council,  the  former  the  loves  of  the  Gods.  But  of 
French-Flemish  tapestries,  Gothic,  Renaissance,  Baroque 
and  Eighteenth  Century,  hundreds  of  the  most  splendid 
examples  have  been  preserved  not  only  in  European  public 
and  private  collections,  especially  in  the  French  National 
Collection,  the  Royal  Spanish  Collection,  the  Imperial 
Austrian  Collection,  but  also  in  America,  in  the  Blumen- 
thal,  Widener,  Bradley,  Harriman,  and  other  famous 
private  collections,  in  the  Metropolitan  Museum  of  Art 
and  in  the  Boston  Museum  of  Fine  Arts. 

All  of  the  world's  great  tapestries  that  survive  were 
woven  in  the  space  of  five  centuries  —  fourteenth,  fif- 
teenth, sixteenth,  seventeenth,  eighteenth  —  Gothic  of  the 
fourteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries.  Renaissance  of  the  six- 
teenth. Baroque  of  the  seventeenth.  Rococo  and  Classic  of 
the  eighteenth  —  the  Gothic  tapestries  lapping  over  the 
first  quarter  of  the  sixteenth  century,  the  Renaissance  into 
the  seventeenth,  the  Baroque  into  the  eighteenth. 

Of  tapestries  made  in  the  fourteenth  century  almost 
none  remain.  The  only  important  exceptions  are  the 
small  Presentation  of  Jesus  at  the  Temple,  in  the  Brus- 
sels Museum;  the  large  King  Arthur  now  on  exhibition 


6 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


here;  the  famous  set  of  the  Apocalypse,  at  the  Cathedral 
of  Angers,  in  France. 

Originally  the  Apocalypse  set  consisted  of  seven  tapes- 
tries 1 8  feet  high  with  combined  length  of  472  feet.  To- 
day, through  wearing  away  at  the  top  and  bottom,  this 
height  is  only  14  feet,  and  of  the  original  90  scenes  there 
are  70  left. 

About  the  provenance  of  these  wonderful  Apocalypse 
tapestries  we  have  the  most  complete  information.  (See 
page  38  of  my  book  on  ''Tapestries").  They  were  woven  in 
Paris  in  the  last  half  of  the  fourteenth  century  in  the  shop 
of  Nicolas  Bataille,  after  cartoons  by  Hennequin  de 
Bruges,  Charles  V's  court  painter,  for  the  king's  brother, 
the  Duke  of  Anjou.  A  century  later  they  became  the 
property  of  the  cathedral. 

For  hundreds  of  years  they  were  proudly  displayed  on 
feast  days  and  admired  by  visiting  thousands.  But  when 
tapestries  went  out  of  fashion  at  the  end  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  the  canons  of  the  cathedral  decided  to  sell  the 
Apocalypse  set.  Only  the  fact  that  no  one  would  buy 
prevented  the  sale.  Finally,  in  1843,  a  sale  was  effected. 
These  priceless  examples  of  the  art  of  the  fourteenth  cen- 
tury were  disposed  of  for  sixty  dollars. 

Meanwhile,  not  believing  that  anything  Gothic  could 
be  beautiful,  the  canons  had  succeeded  in  making  the 
tapestries  of  the  Apocalypse  useful.  Some  they  divided 
into  rugs  for  the  chambers  of  the  Bishop's  palace.  Others 
they  took  out  into  the  green  houses  on  cold  nights  to 
spread  over  the  orange  trees  and  keep  the  frost  away. 
One  they  cut  up  into  strips  and  nailed  on  the  stalls  of 
the  Bishop's  stables,  to  keep  his  horses  from  bruising  them- 
selves. 

Fortunately,  the  man  who  purchased  the  set  for  sixty 
dollars  was  wiser  than  the  canons,  and  restored  it  to  the 
cathedral,  of  which  it  is  once  again  the  chief  treasure,  and 
an  object  of  pilgrimage  from  all  over  the  world. 

The  King  Arthur  tapestry  shown  in  this  exhibition  is 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


7 


the  only  large  fourteenth  century  tapestry  I  know,  except 
the  Apocalypse  ones  at  Angers. 

At  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century  came  a  revo- 
lution in  the  design  of  tapestries.  Gothic  was  replaced  by 
Renaissance,  Flemish  by  Italian.  To  Raphael  and  his 
famous  pupil,  Giulio  Romano,  the  transformation  was 
largely  due.  The  former  with  his  Acts  of  the  Apostles, 
the  latter  with  his  Scipio,  Romulus  and  Remus,  Fruits  of 
War,  Grotesque  Months  and  other  series,  completely 
changed  the  prevailing  style  from  Mediaeval  to  Renais- 
sance. Flemish  designers  like  Bernard  Van  Orley  and 
Lucas  van  Leyden  also  excelled  in  the  new  style. 

In  the  seventeenth  century  the  tapestry  leadership 
passed  from  Flanders  to  France.  The  Gobelins  and 
Beauvais  became  the  great  centers  of  tapestry  production. 

In  the  eighteenth  century  were  created  the  tapestries 
best  suited  for  most  modern  residences,  after  the  designs 
of  Boucher,  Coypel,  Casanova,  and  Leprince  at  Beau- 
vais; after  the  design  of  Coypel,  Boucher,  Jeaurat,  and 
others  at  the  Gobelins.  The  most  exquisite  of  these  are 
the  Beauvais-Bouchers,  so  called  because  designed  by 
Francois  Boucher  and  woven  at  Beauvais.  Aubusson, 
with  improved  designs  and  dyes,  also  produced  charming 
small  panels  in  the  third  quarter  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury. 

Never  before  in  America  have  so  many  Gobelin  and 
Beauvais  tapestries  of  first  excellence  been  assembled. 
The  five  Beauvais-Bouchers  are  a  revelation.  The  six 
Gobelin  Months  of  Lucas  are  worth  crossing  the  continent 
to  see.  The  Chinese  Boucher  is  a  brilliant  illustration  of 
the  land  of  the  pigtail  as  seen  through  eighteenth  century 
European  eyes. 

Of  course,  the  religious  center  of  the  exhibition  is  the 
Gothic  room.  In  the  Middle  Ages  religion,  which  is  now 
too  often  of  man's  life  a  thing  apart,  permeated  his  whole 
existence.  In  tapestries  were  pictured  before  him  the 
sacred  stories  of  the  Old  Testament  and  of  the  New,  the 
Lives  of  Christ  and  the  Virgin,  and  of  the  Saints.    At  the 


8 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


head  of  all  stands  Christ  and  the  Woman,  the  finest  tapes- 
try in  America.  Also  of  great  value  to  the  Bible  teacher 
is  the  Marriage  of  David,  larger  and  earlier  in  style,  and 
even  more  splendid  in  composition  and  execution  than 
the  famous  Story  of  David  set  at  the  Cluny  Museum  in 
Paris. 

LECTURE  PROMENADES 

During  the  first  two  weeks  of  the  exhibition,  begin- 
ning Monday,  October  6,  and  from  November  i6  to 
December  i,  Mr.  Hunter  will  give  free  daily  lecture  prom- 
enades before  the  tapestries  to  selected  groups  from  the 
schools,  and  churches,  and  clubs,  and  decorative  shops  and 
departments,  of  Cleveland.  Appointments  may  be  made 
by  letter  or  telephone  to  Miss  Underhill,  Garfield  4015. 


DESCRIPTIVE  LIST 
OF 

THE  TAPESTRIES  EXHIBITED 

1.  CHRIST  AND  THE  WOMAN,  a  late  Gothic  tapestry,  rich 
with  gold  and  silver,  designed  by  Gerard  David,  and  woven  in  Brus- 
sels at  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century.  This  is  the  finest 
tapestry  in  America.  It  excels  not  only  in  the  qualities  that  make 
a  great  tapestry  but  also  in  the  qualities  that  make  a  great  picture. 
It  excels  not  only  in  story  interest  and  texture  interest  but  also  in 
composition  and  drawing.  It  even  excels  the  two  Story  of  the 
Virgin  tapestries  in  the  Royal  Spanish  Collection,  also  after  the  de- 
sign of  Gerard  David,  of  which  Count  Valencia  wrote:  "They  are 
the  most  sumptuous  and  the  most  beautiful  that  ever  left  the 
shops  of  Brussels." 

The  scene  is  the  Temple  at  Jerusalem  pictured  as  a  French- 
Flemish  Gothic  cathedral,  with  floor  of  alternately  figured  marble 
tiles.  In  the  foreground  kneels  the  Woman  with  the  Latin  inscrip- 
tion just  below  her  on  the  inside  edge  of  the  woven  frame.  Facing 
her.  on  the  right,  under  a  noble  canopy,  stands  Jesus,  in  the  act  of 
uttering  the  phrase  that  dumfounded  her  accusers.  Behind  the 
Woman,  on  the  left,  two  of  the  accusers  holding  in  their  hands 
stones  which  they  have  lost  the  desire  to  cast  at  her.  In  the 
middle  ground  other  accusers  and  spectators.  In  the  background 
leaded  glass  windows,  a  hanger  carrying  the  Order  of  Services,  and 
a  large  iron  sconce  with  half-burned  candle.  Through  the  door  on 
the  left,  a  narrow  vista  of  landscape  above  and  brick  wall  and 
ferns  below. 

The  subject  of  the  scene  is  found  in  the  Latin  inscription: 

Mittat  labe  carens  in  earn  primitus  saxa. 
"He  that  is  without  sin  among  you,  let 
him  first  cast  a  stone  at  her." 

taken  from  the  eighth  chapter  of  the  Gospel  of  Saint  John: 

"Jesus  went  into  the  Mount  of  Olives,  and  early  in  the  morn- 
ing he  came  again  into  the  temple,  and  all  the  people  came  unto 
him;  and  he  sat  down  and  taught  them.  And  the  scribes  and 
Pharisees  brought  unto  him  a  woman  taken  in  adultery;  and  when 
they  had  set  her  in  the  midst,  they  said  unto  him.  Master,  this 
woman  was  taken  in  adultery,  in  the  very  act.  Now  Moses  in  the 
law  commanded  us  that  such  should  be  stoned:  but  what  sayest 
thou?  This  they  said,  tempting  him,  that  they  might  have  to 
accuse  him.  But  Jesus  stooped  down,  and  with  his  finger  wrote 
on  the  ground,  as  though  he  heard  them  not.    So  when  they  con- 


lo  THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 

tinued  asking  him,  he  lifted  up  himself,  and  said  unto  them,  "He 
that  is  without  sin  among  you,  let  him  first  cast  a  stone  at  her." 

With  genius  did  Gerard  David  of  Bruges,  who  designed  the 
tapestry  during  the  reign  in  the  Netherlands  of  Philip  and  Joanna 
(1496-1506),  present  the  critical  moment  of  the  story.  Astonish- 
ment and  dismay  reveal  themselves  equally  in  the  faces  of  the 
accusers.  Evidently  they  have  themselves  been  caught  in  the  trap 
set  for  another.  By  the  word  of  Jesus  the  accusers  have  become 
the  accused. 

Their  faces  and  eyes  are  masterpieces  of  artistic  accomplishment. 
As  a  rule,  one  is  obliged  to  admit  that  portraiture  is  the  province 
of  the  brush  rather  than  of  the  bobbin.  But  here  woven  cloth  has 
surpassed  painted  canvas  on  its  own  ground,  while  at  the  same  time 
retaining  its  preeminence  elsewhere.  The  weaver  has  understood 
with  his  wool  and  silk  how  to  get  paint  effects,  and  also  to  employ 
gold  and  silver  more  lavishly,  more  skillfully,  and  more  wisely  than 
in  any  other  tapestry  with  which  I  am  acquainted. 

Occupying  the  narrower  panels  of  the  tapestry,  on  each  side  of 
the  main  scene,  sit  the  Four  Apostles,  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke  and 
John,  with  their  symbohc  attributes;  on  the  right.  Saint  Matthew 
with  his  cherub,  and  Saint  Luke  with  his  ox;  on  the  left  Saint  Mark, 
with  his  lion,  and  Saint  John  with  his  eagle.  The  ox  and  the  lion 
are  archaic  in  drawing,  as  if  based  on  ancient  and  primitive  proto- 
types. The  right  wing  is  backgrounded  by  a  landscape  window 
with  slender  Gothic  column  in  the  middle;  the  left  wing  by  a  draped 
closet  of  shelves,  on  which  are  books  in  disorder,  as  if  in  active  use. 
Saint  Matthew  and  Saint  Mark  are  reading  from  large  and  ele- 
gantly bound  Bibles,  while  Saint  Luke  and  Saint  John  are  writing 
with  quills.  Saint  Luke's  manuscript  lies  upon  a  closed  book  that 
rests  on  his  knee,  but  Saint  John's  book  is  supported  by  a  triangular 
reading  shelf  that  holds  it  and  another  book  at  right  angles  to  each 
other.  The  second  book  is  open  towards  the  front.  Saint  John's 
eagle  holds  in  his  beak  cords  from  which  are  suspended  an  ink  bot- 
tle and  a  cylindrical  manuscript  case. 

In  arrangement  the  tapestry  is  a  triptych  divided  and  bounded 
by  four  slender  round  Gothic  columns,  the  outer  two  with  spiral 
fluting  and  square  base  and  capital,  the  inner  two  with  pentagonal 
base  and  capital,  and  with  wedge-shaped  flutings  which  enhance  the 
apparent  height,  and  by  line  contrast  force  the  scenes  of  the  tapestry 
back.  The  personages  in  the  background  rising  above  those  in 
the  foreground  also  emphasize  vertically  in  the  Gothic  fashion,  as 
do  the  columns  and  upright  mouldings  of  the  architecture  in  the 
background. 

The  flat,  jeweled  arches  that  crown  the  side  panels,  and  the 
broad  shoes  of  the  youth  who  wears  the  embroidered  sash  around  his 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


II 


waist  are  positive  evidence  of  the  approach  of  the  Renaissance,  and 
of  the  tendency  to  balance  Gothic  verticals  by  Classical  horizontals. 

The  symmetry  of  the  composition  is  extreme.  In  the  left  wing 
two  personages  and  an  eagle  balancing  two  personages  and  a  cherub 
in  the  right  wing,  and  in  the  middle  panel  personages  symmetrically 
grouped  on  each  side  of  the  Woman. 

Yet  classic  simplicity  and  symmetry  have  been  achieved  with- 
out sacrifice  of  the  enthusiastic  and  expressive  vigor  of  Gothic.  In 
true  Gothic  fashion  every  inch  of  the  surface  has  been  made  aUve 
with  line  and  color,  but  the  ornament  has  been  so  completely  sub- 
ordinated as  nowhere  to  seem  too  much. 

Especially  prominent  is  the  pomegranate  pattern  that  in  fif- 
teenth century  Gothic  art  took  the  place  of  the  lotus  of  ancient 
Egypt,  and  of  the  acanthus  of  ancient  Rome.  The  border  consists 
of  clusters  of  pomegranate  leaves  and  fruit  arranged  in  groups  that 
alternate  in  direction,  and  contrast  gently  in  color.  The  garments  of 
most  of  the  figures  in  the  foreground,  as  well  as  the  squares  of  the 
back  of  the  canopy,  are  patterned  in  large  and  intricately  elaborate 
pomegranate  motifs,  which  differ  for  the  diflferent  personages. 

Pomegranate  motifs  in  line  on  blue  ground  also  drive  forward  by 
contrast  the  figures  in  the  upper  part  of  the  two  side  panels. 

Height,  8  feetj  inches;length,  1 1  feet  i  inch.  Lent  by  Duveen  Bros. 

2.  KING  ARTHUR,  an  early  Gothic  tapestry  woven  in  Paris  in 
the  last  quarter  of  the  fourteenth  century.  A  favorite  theme  of 
tapestry  makers  of  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries  was  the 
Nine  Heroes  (Preux):  three  pagan.  Hector,  Alexander,  Caesar; 
three  Hebrew,  David,  Joshua,  Judas  Maccabaeus;  three  Christian, 
Arthur,  Charlemagne,  Godfrey  de  Bouillon.  Charles  V,  King  of 
France  from  1364  to  1380,  had  two  tapestries  picturing  the  Nine 
Heroes,  and  his  brother  Louis,  Duke  of  Anjou,  had  one.  Similar 
tapestries  were  also  owned  by  the  king's  other  brothers,  the  Dukes 
of  Burgundy  and  Berri,  but  with  a  tenth  Preux  added,  the  contem- 
porary Hero  of  the  war  against  England,  Bertrand  du  Guesclin. 
A  contemporary  French  poem  preserved  in  a  manuscript  in  the 
BibHotheque  Nationale,  reads  translated: 

Since  he  is  dead,  let  him  be  put  in  the  table 
Of  Maccabaeus,  first  Hero  in  renown, 
Of  Joshua,  David  the  wise, 
Alexander,  Hector,  and  Absalom, 
Arthur,  Charles,  Godfrey  de  Bouillon. 
Now  let  be  named  the  tenth  of  them, 
Bertrand,  the  Preux  who  like  a  hero  served 
The  azure  shield  with  three  golden  fleurs-de-lis. 

Of  all  the  Gothic  Hero  tapestries,  however,  only  a  few  large 
fragments  have  survived.    The  most  important  are  the  one  shown 


12 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


in  this  exhibition,  from  the  fourteenth  century,  and  the  Bale,  Saint 
Maxent  and  Fraisse  fragments  from  the  fifteenth  century.  In  all 
King  Arthur  appears  with  his  traditional  coat  of  arms,  "three  crowns 
of  gold  on  azure."  He  also  appears  with  the  same  coat  of  arms  in 
the  Triumph  of  Christ  tapestry  at  the  Brussels  Museum,  and  in  the 
Charlemagne  tapestry  belonging  to  Mr.  George  Blumenthal.  (See 
plates  370,  371  of  Hunter's  "Tapestries,  Their  Origin,  History  and 
Renaissance.") 

In  the  tapestry  before  us  King  Arthur  wears  his  coat  of  arms 
not  only  on  the  pennant  that  floats  from  his  lance  but  also  upon 
his  breast.  He  is  fully  armored  and  his  left  hand  draws  a  sword 
from  its  sheath.  He  is  seated  in  a  throne  chair  and  framed  in 
Gothic  architecture  of  the  same  type  as  appears  in  the  famous  four- 
teenth century  set  of  Apocalypse  tapestries  at  the  Cathedral  of 
Angers.  Indeed,  the  resemblance  between  this  tapestry  and  the 
Apocalypse  set  is  in  every  way  striking.  Just  as  the  main  person- 
age in  each  of  the  Apocalypse  sets  occupies  the  full  height  of  the 
tapestry,  while  the  other  scenes  are  in  two  rows,  one  above  the 
other,  so  here  Arthur  occupies  the  full  height  of  the  tapestry,  and 
on  each  side  of  him  are  lesser  personages  arranged  in  a  double  tier: 
above,  two  archbishops  standing  in  the  balconies  with  archepiscopal 
cross  on  staff;  below,  two  bishops  with  episcopal  crozier  (derived 
not  from  the  cross  but  from  the  shepherd's  staff).  Noteworthy  are 
the  jewels  displayed  by  the  bishops  and  archbishops,  on  their  mitres, 
fastening  their  cloaks,  and  on  the  backs  of  their  hands.  Arthur,  hke 
the  two  lesser  warriors  in  the  extreme  left,  has  a  long  flowing  beard 
and  long  flowing  hair  of  the  same  type  as  seen  in  the  Apocalypse. 
Size,  8  feet  by  10  feet  11.    Lent  by  Duveen  Brothers. 

3.  VINTAGE,  the  most  splendid  tapestry  of  the  kind  anywhere, 
woven  in  Flanders  in  the  second  quarter  of  the  fifteenth  century, 
contemporaneously  with  the  Duke  of  Devonshire's  four  Hartwick 
Hall  Hunting  tapestries  that  now  hang  on  loan  in  the  Victoria  and 
Albert  Museum.  It  formerly  belonged  to  the  famous  collection  of 
M.  Edouard  Ainard  of  Lyons,  and  was  illustrated  and  described  in 
1913  by  M.  Seymour  de  Ricci,  in  thcGazeUe  des Beaux-Arts\  by  M. 
Paul  Vitry  in  Les  Arts;  and  by  M.  E.  Bertaux  in  the  Revue  de  V Art 
Ancien  et  Moderne.  It  is  vivid  with  Hfe  and  color,  and  to  a  surpass- 
ing degree  displays  the  same  super-excellencies  of  tapestry  texture 
as  the  famous  fifteenth  century  Trojan  War  Series,  one  of  which  now 
hangs  in  the  Metropohtan  Museum  of  Art,  lent  by  Mr.  Edson 
Bradley.  The  clarity  of  composition  and  detail  in  the  tapestry 
before  us  are  extraordinary.  On  the  right,  lords  and  ladies,  the 
latter  wearing  the  altitudinous  steeple  hats  then  in  style,  that  rhyme 
with  the  pointed  shoes  displayed  in  the  middle  foreground.   On  the 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


13 


left,  the  peasants  buying  the  grapes,  pouring  the  wine  into  barrels, 
and  selling  it  for  precious  coins  that  the  buyer  counts  out  grudgingly. 
In  the  very  center,  a  driver  with  whip  urging  forward  the  sturdy 
horse  that  hauls  a  barrel-laden  cart.  On  the  middle  left,  a  patient 
bold-eyed  donkey,  struggling  under  two  panniers  full  of  grapes.  In 
the  background,  a  landscape  with  castles  and  birds  and  church. 
In  the  moat  on  the  right,  a  long-necked  swan  sedately  watching. 
Note  especially  the  three  dogs,  all  different  and  all  interesting,  and 
all  better  drawn  than  most  tapestry  dogs.  Note  also  the  excellence 
of  the  details  of  the  barrel  and  the  wheeled  cart  on  the  right,  and 
the  character  and  the  animation  in  the  forms  and  faces  of  all  the  per- 
sonages. Size  II  feet  by  17  feet  6.  Lent  by  Jacques  Seligmann,  of 
Paris. 

4.  MARRIAGE  OF  KING  DAVID,  the  largest  tapestry  I  have 
ever  seen.  It  is  not  only  larger  than  any  of  the  famous  "Story  of 
David"  set  of  ten,  in  the  Cluny  Museum,  but  it  is  also  more  beauti- 
ful in  composition,  more  briUiant  in  coloring  and  more  exquisite  in 
texture.  It  is  also  about  fifteen  years  earlier  in  date,  having  been  on 
the  looms  at  the  time  Columbus  discovered  America,  and  conse- 
quently is  much  more  Gothic  in  architecture  and  in  spirit,  and  shows 
much  less  evidence  of  the  approach  of  the  Renaissance.  The  central 
scene,  from  which  the  tapestry  takes  its  name,  illustrates  the  Mar- 
riage of  King  David,  after  Bathsheba's  husband,  Uriah,  the  Hit- 
tite,  had  been  betrayed  to  death  by  David.  Only  then  could  David 
receive  Bathsheba  at  his  court  as  his  lawful  wife.  The  chamberlain, 
who  had  been  sent  to  fetch  Bathsheba,  kneels  on  the  left,  while 
Bathsheba  kneels  on  the  right;  King  David  sits  in  majesty  upon  his 
throne  surrounded  by  the  lords  and  ladies  of  his  court  in  brilliant 
fifteenth  century  costume. 

The  upper  scene  on  the  left  is  the  first,  chronologically.  Here 
David  sees  Bathsheba  for  the  first  time.  This  is  the  scene  com- 
monly called  "Bathsheba  at  the  Bath,"  a  picture  much  more  modest 
in  Gothic  art  than  as  portrayed  by  Rubens  in  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury, or  Boucher  in  the  eighteenth  century.  The  lower  scene  on  the 
left  pictures  the  first  meeting  of  David  and  Bathsheba.  He  had  no 
sooner  seen  her  than  he  was  impatient  to  know  her  better.  He  sent 
for  her  immediately  and  received  her  affectionately,  as  the  tapestry 
shows,  to  the  great  scandal  of  his  Court. 

Next  comes  the  marriage  scene  in  the  middle,  already  described, 
followed  by  the  lower  scene  on  the  right,  "The  Reproach  of  Nathan," 
where  the  prophet  bitterly  blames  David  and  Bathsheba,  seated 
together  on  the  throne,  for  the  sin  that  they  have  committed.  The 
upper  scene  on  the  right  pictures  the  grief  of  David  and  of  Bath- 
sheba at  the  mortal  illness  of  their  passionately  adored  child  that 


14 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


lies  on  the  bed  of  which  only  a  corner  is  visible.  Size,  1 5  feet  by 
29  feet  5.   Lent  by  Duveen  Brothers. 

5.  TWO  SIBYLS,  a  late  Gothic  tapestry,  woven  in  Flanders  at  the 
beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century.  The  Sibyls  were  the  oracles  of 
God  in  the  ancient  pagan  world.  The  Sibylline  books  were  the  Bible 
and  the  ultimate  authority  of  the  Roman  Kingdom  that  later  grew 
into  the  Roman  Republic  and  the  Roman  Empire.  When  the 
Roman  Empire  became  Christian  the  Sibyls  became  Christian  also. 
One  of  the  Sibyls  is  pictured  in  the  left  wing  of  the  Mazarin  tapestry, 
as  kneeHng  before  the  Emperor  Augustus  in  one  scene,  and  in 
another  scene  as  pointing  out  to  him  a  vision  in  the  sky  of  the  Infant 
Christ  in  his  Mother's  arms.  The  other  Sibyls  also  did  their  part 
in  announcing  the  Coming  of  Christ. 

The  two  pictures  on  the  tapestry  before  us,  with  inscriptions  in 
Latin,  are  the  Erythraean  and  Cumaean  Sibyls.  The  inscription  of 
the  Erythraean  Sibyl  reads  translated:  *'In  the  last  age  God  shall 
humble  himself,  the  divine  offspring  shall  become  human,  divinity 
and  humanity  shall  be  united,  he  shall  lie  on  hay,  etc."  The  in- 
scription of  the  Cumaean  Sibyl  reads:  **The  Cumaean  Sibyl  foretold 
the  sign  of  judgment,  the  earth  shall  be  moist  with  sweat,  the  king 
shall  come  from  Heaven  to  reign  throughout  the  centuries  actually 
present  in  the  flesh,  etc."  Size,  11  feet  2  by  10  feet  6.  Lent  by 
Duveen  Bros. 

6.  SHEPHERD  AND  HUNTING  tapestry,  one  of  a  unique  and 
splendid  set  of  six.  Woven  at  Tournai,  then  in  France,  near  the  end 
of  the  fifteenth  century.  The  scene  pictures  the  arrival  on  the  left 
of  a  lord  and  his  lady  mounted  on  a  powerful  white  charger,  who  are 
welcomed  by  the  youthful  lord  and  lady  in  the  middle  of  the  tapes- 
try. On  the  right,  a  huntsman  somewhat  impertinently  chucks 
under  the  chin  a  damsel  holding  a  rabbit.  In  the  foreground,  two 
dogs,  two  children  and  a  page  carrying  the  huntsman's  spear.  In 
the  background,  shepherds  and  shepherdesses  with  their  houletteSy 
mingled  with  sheep  of  the  nursery  type.  In  the  background,  with 
high  Gothic  sky-line,  a  landscape  with  castles.  Size,  11  feet  5  by 
13  feet  9.   Lent  by  Duveen  Brothers. 

7.  MARRIAGE  OF  PEACE  AND  LOVE.  A  Gothic  tapestry 
woven  in  Flanders  at  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth  century.  This 
is  one  of  the  most  delightful  products  of  the  Gothic  Renaissance 
transition  period,  when  the  inspiration  of  Renaissance  design  began 
to  illuminate  a  texture  that  was  still  completely  Gothic.  Already 
the  personages  are  arranged  horizontally,  forming  a  broad  horizon- 
tal band  between  the  horizontal  band  of  mille  fleur  foreground  with 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


15 


animals  and  birds  and  the  horizontal  background  of  landscape  with 
sky  and  air  and  water,  castles  and  mountains.  Already  horizontal 
lines  and  bands  begin  to  break  up  and  shorten  robes  and  gowns  that 
a  few  years  before  were  entirely  Gothic  and  entirely  vertical.  Already 
Renaissance  architecture  and  ornament  appear  on  the  chariot  with 
its  Renaissance  horn  of  plenty,  and  Renaissance  tassels  on  the  rich 
robes;  while  the  massive  trumpets  of  dilleccion  and  doulceur  are  em- 
phatically Renaissance. 

Yet  the  milk  fieur  foreground  in  arrangement  and  execution  is 
entirely  Gothic,  with  animals  and  birds  pasted  flat  against  the  foli- 
age; and  the  architecture  of  the  background  shows  not  a  suggestion 
of  return  to  Classic.  One  is  immediately  reminded  of  the  famous 
"Lady  with  the  Unicorn"  series  in  the  Cluny  Museum,  and  espe- 
cially of  the  fascinating  late  Gothic  series  of  "Triumphs"  in  the 
Imperial  Austrian  Collection,  which  are  illustrated  on  pages  49  and 
375  of  Hunter's  "Tapestries." 

The  latter  series  also  resembles  the  "Marriage  of  Peace  and 
Love"  in  having  a  landscape  background;  and  in  having  the  story 
told  in  an  old  French  quatrain  above;  and  in  having  the  identity 
of  the  different  personages  made  clear  by  woven  inscriptions,  all  in 
Gothic  letters. 

The  old  French  quatrain  descriptive  of  the  tapestry  before  us 
reads: 

Paix  et  amour  en  loyal  mariage 

Font  triumpher  par  immortelle  fame 

Les  soeurs  huit  dechassant  blasine  tnjame 

De  chaste te  et  pudique  courage 

and  translated: 

Peace  and  love  in  loyal  marriage 

Make  triumph  through  immortal  fame 

The  eight  sisters,  driving  away  infamous  slander 

With  chastity  and  modest  courage 

The  two  principal  characters  are  Peace  {paix)  and  Love  {amour)y 
seated  triumphant  side  by  side  upon  the  chariot  of  Marriage  {mar- 
iage),  the  former  with  a  small  picture  of  Christ  Crucified  in  her  left 
hand,  the  latter  carrying  in  her  left  hand  a  large  V  that  encloses 
two  hearts.  Both  ladies  wear  beautiful  necklaces,  and  from  the 
necklace  of  Love  hangs  a  pendant  cross.  The  hair  of  Love,  like  that 
of  Esther  in  the  Mazarin  tapestry,  hangs  over  her  neck  and  breast 
down  to  her  waist  in  two  long  horns,  that  contrast  strangely  with 
the  single  horns  of  the  eight  sisters.  The  names  of  the  eight  sisters, 
that  through  immortal  fame  (fame  immortelle^  who  is  winged  and 
carries  a  large  square  banner  figured  with  a  large  tree)  make  triumph 
Peace  and  Love,  are  AflFection  {dillection)^  Agreeableness  {amenite). 
Sweetness  {doulceur)^  Harmony  {concorde)^  Fidelity  {fedellite),  Loy- 


i6 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


alty  {Joy ante)  ^  Joy  {Hesse) ^  Felicity  {fellicite)^  the  first  four  with 
exquisite  milHnery  of  the  period  and  engaged  in  making  sweet 
music,  the  last  four  with  crowns  of  olive.  Loyalty  holds  up  a  knot 
in  her  right  hand  to  indicate  her  steadfastness,  while  Fidelity  adver- 
tises her  character  by  having  her  robe  bordered  with  a  series  of 
knots,  and  her  right  hand  grasps  the  symbolic  hand.  An  upraised 
apple  testifies  to  the  delightful  quahties  of  Felicity.  The  wedding 
chariot,  though  noisy  with  bells  that  hang  from  the  body,  is  very 
appropriately  drawn  by  two  small  sheep,  while  the  wedding  ring  is 
displayed  to  view  by  the  god  of  marriage  {hymeneus)  who  walks  at 
the  left  of  the  peaceful  steeds,  followed  by  King  Oeneus  who  carries 
a  partially  unrolled  manuscript.  Size,  lo  feet  by  14  feet  2.  Lent  by 
W.  G.  Mather. 

8.  SHEPHERD  LOVER,  a  Gothic  tapestry  woven  in  Flanders  in 
the  last  quarter  of  the  fifteenth  century.  The  scene  represented  is 
a  Garden  of  Pleasure  which  the  youthful  shepherd  on  the  left 
regards  with  desire,  but  which  the  aged  shepherd  on  the  right 
regards  with  aversion.  Before  the  court-yard,  children  are  merrily 
and  shamelessly  splashing  in  the  water  without  apparent  fear  of  the 
lion.  Inside  the  court-yard,  animals  real  and  imaginary  are  por- 
trayed with  great  force.  In  the  upper  left  corner  is  a  wild  fox.  In 
the  lower  left  corner,  a  youth  with  falcon,  and  in  the  lower  right 
corner,  a  shepherd  carrying  a  sheep  around  his  neck.  The  inscrip- 
tion on  the  left  reads,  translated:  **The  shepherd  lover  gay  and 
joyful  at  the  court  of  pleasure."  The  inscription  on  the  right  reads, 
translated,  giving  the  words  of  the  aged  shepherd;  *T  leave  such 
games,  wish  to  play  no  more,  am  getting  old."  Size,  9  feet  8  by 
13  feet.    Lent  by  L.  Alavoine  &  Company. 

9,  10.  MILLE  FLEUR  tapestries  of  unusual  interest.  Of  course, 
no  tapestry  exhibition  is  complete  without  a  mille  fleur  tapestry. 
Mille  Fleur  tapestries  are  more  generally  popular  than  any  others 
and  with  much  reason.  Seldom,  however,  are  they  equal  in  quality 
and  condition  to  the  two  here  exhibited.  Delightfully  quaint  and 
fascinating  are  the  animals  silhouetted  on  the  floriated  background, 
and  the  coat  of  arms  in  the  second  of  the  two  tapestries  is  an  im- 
portant feature.  Size  of  the  first,  9  feet  5  by  8  feet  i;  of  the  second, 
9  feet  I  by  9  feet.   Lent  by  Duveen  Brothers. 

11.  HOSPITALITY,  a  Flemish  Gothic  tapestry  that  pictures  in 
great  detail  a  French-Flemish  dinner  of  the  last  quarter  of  the 
fifteenth  century.  The  aged  host  with  grey  hair  and  beard,  plumed 
hat  of  fur,  and  robe  figured  with  pomegranate  motifs — which  are  as 
typical  of  the  period  as  was  the  lotus  of  ancient  Egypt  and  the 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


17 


acanthus  of  ancient  Rome — turns  away  from  his  cover  laid  at  the 
head  of  the  table,  to  warm  his  hands  before  the  open  fire,  and  also 
to  make  a  grouping  easier  for  the  artist  and  the  weaver  to  reproduce; 
but  looks  toward  his  guests  as  if  to  say  the  words  of  the  old  French 
inscription  that  holds  the  top  of  the  tapestry: 

The  man  wise  at  pleasing  the  ladies 
First  has  preparations  made  for  eating; 
And  cooking  worthy  of  his  friends  has  done. 
And  of  all  good  things  there  are  to  wish  for. 

Already  four  of  the  guests  are  seated  at  the  table,  the  pair  in 
the  background  on  a  bench  the  back  rail  of  which  is  topped  with 
carved  trefoils,  the  pair  in  the  foreground  on  stools.  The  two  late 
comers  enter  with  a  happily  expectant  expression  on  their  faces, 
the  man  carrying  in  his  left  hand  a  flask  of  wine  to  add  to  the  good 
cheer.  In  the  right  foreground  a  page  pours  water  from  a  fiagon 
into  one  of  the  finger  bowls,  which  were  so  constantly  necessary  at  a 
time  when  people  still  ate  with  their  fingers.  One  of  the  finger  bowls 
is  already  in  use,  and  held  in  the  left  hand  of  the  smart  gentleman 
with  the  triple-plumed  hat,  braided  inner  collar,  ermine  outer  collar, 
and  huge  necklace.  Two  of  the  others  filled  with  rose-tinted  and 
scented  water  stand  upon  the  square  table  that  is  covered  with  a 
white  damask  cloth  figured  in  diamonds.  In  the  center  of  the  table 
is  the  piece  de  resistance^  a  large  flat  dish  of  broiled  squabs  kept  hot 
by  the  coal  in  the  brazier  beneath,  which  for  obvious  reasons  is 
raised  high  above  the  cloth.  On  the  left  of  the  dish  of  hot  birds  is 
a  covered  salt  cellar;  and  on  the  right  a  covered  wine  pitcher  with 
long  slender  spout  and  handle.  Other  visible  utensils  are  sharp 
pointed  knives,  one  of  them  in  the  right  hand  of  the  gentleman  in 
the  foreground,  wine  cups,  and  square  flat  plates. 

The  center  of  action,  however,  toward  which  the  eyes  of  four  of 
the  guests  are  directed,  is  the  blazing  fire.  Before  it  sits  the  cook, 
wearing  cap  and  apron,  and  turning  with  a  long  flat  spoon  the  cakes 
that  are  cooking  in  the  spider,  which  she  balances  upon  the  adjust- 
able crane  that  depends  from  above.  On  a  tabouret  beside  her  is 
the  bowl  of  mixed  dough,  and  next  that  another  page  who  kneels  in 
order  to  keep  his  head  out  of  the  way  of  our  seeing  the  cakes  as 
they  cook. 

The  floor  of  the  room  is  tiled.  In  the  extreme  foreground  on  the 
right  stands  a  small  but  very  alert  dog  watching  the  page  who 
pours  the  water.  On  the  left  squats  a  cat  with  the  kind  of  tail  and 
arched  back  and  excited  ears  that  are  characteristic  of  a  cat  looking 
at  a  dog.  Up  above,  dominating  the  whole  room,  perches  a  parrot 
in  a  large  wooden  cage,  to  the  outside  of  which  is  attached  the  bird's 
water  cup.   Size,  10  feet  10  by  10  feet  9.    Lent  by  Duveen  Brothers. 


i8 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


12.  THE  LETTER,  a  Gothic-Renaissance  fragment  woven  in 
Flanders  about  1 5 1 5.  The  hatchings  are  striking  and  brilliant,  mak- 
ing the  long  robes  fall  in  Gothic  folds;  but  the  hats  and  the  slashed 
hose  are  already  Renaissance.  The  man  musician  plays  both  drum 
and  clarinet;  the  woman,  a  guitar.  Size,  6  feet  8  by  3  feet  8.  Lent 
by  Howard  P.  Eells. 

13.  THE  MESSENGER,  an  early  Renaissance  tapestry  with 
luxurious  border  full  of  pomegranates  and  of  the  Van  Orley  type, 
woven  at  Brussels  about  1530.  Note  the  richness  of  the  costumes, 
that  are  in  every  way  true  to  the  period,  when  Emperor  Charles  V 
was  still  young,  and  all  the  world  seemed  good  to  him  and  his  bride 
Isabella.  In  the  foreground,  the  young  and  noble  husband,  despite 
the  remonstrances  of  his  bride,  gives  a  letter  to  the  messenger,  who, 
in  the  upper  right  corner,  delivers  it  to  the  old  Emperor,  who  in  the 
upper  left  corner  has  just  slain  a  lion  with  his  bare  hands.  In  the 
extreme  upper  left  corner  the  Emperor  appears  in  the  heavens, 
perhaps  indicating  that  the  tapestry  was  designed  after  his  death. 
Size,  10  feet  8  by  10  feet  9.   Lent  by  J.  H.  Wade. 

14.  DESCENT  FROM  THE  CROSS.  An  early  Renaissance 
tapestry  rich  with  gold,  designed  by  the  famous  court  painter  Ber- 
nard van  Orley,  and  woven  in  Brussels  between  1520  and  1525. 
While  Van  Orley  ranks  only  moderately  high  as  a  painter,  he  ranks 
first  among  Renaissance  designers  of  tapestries,  surpassing  even  his 
Italian  contemporary,  Giulio  Romano,  as  well  as  Giulio's  master, 
Raphael.  The  comparison  between  Van  Orley's  painting  and  Van 
Orley's  tapestry  can  be  made  in  the  Altman  Collection  of  the 
Metropohtan  Museum,  which  possesses  an  example  of  both. 

The  group  consists  of  four  personages,  the  dead  Christ  wearing 
the  crown  of  thorns,  Joseph  of  Arimathea,  who  carries  Him  down 
the  ladder  that  rests  against  the  Cross,  the  Virgin  who  receives  the 
body  of  her  Son  sorrowfully,  and  saint  John  with  angelic  face  and 
long  curling  hair  who  assists  her  affectionately.  Joseph's  fur- 
trimmed  coat  and  tasseled  wallet  announce  that  their  wearer  is  a 
man  of  wealth  and  position.  The  Cross  bears  the  usual  Latin 
initials  I.  N.  R.  I.  (Jesus  of  Nazareth,  King  of  the  Jews),  and  the 
scene  is  effectively  backgrounded  with  landscape  and  sky,  an 
ancient  castle  on  the  left,  and  the  Entombment  on  the  right,  with 
Joseph  and  three  others  laying  the  body  of  Jesus  in  the  marble 
coffin  that  is  to  be  sealed  up  in  the  cave  behind. 

In  the  four  corners  of  the  border  are  the  symbols  and  names  of 
the  four  apostles  Matthew,  Mark,  Luke  and  John.  In  the  upper 
left  corner,  the  angel  of  Saint  Matthew  (SANCTVS  MATTHEVS); 
in  the  lower  right  corner,  the  winged  lion  of  Saint  Mark;  in  the  lower 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


19 


left  corner,  the  winged  ox  of  Saint  Luke;  in  the  upper  right  corner, 
the  eagle  of  Saint  John.  Size,  4  feet  square.  Lent  by  Lewis  & 
Simmons. 

15.  DIANA  AND  ACTAEON.  A  large  and  well  composed 
Renaissance  tapestry  woven  at  Brussels  in  the  middle  of  the  six- 
teenth century,  portraying  Diana  at  the  Bath  with  almost  Gothic 
modesty,  on  the  right;  and  on  the  left,  Actaeon,  whose  accidental 
discovery  of  Diana  was  so  fatal  to  himself.  This  tapestry  is  an 
excellent  illustration  of  the  superiority  of  Renaissance  verdure  effect 
in  both  panels  and  borders  to  those  of  the  seventeenth  and  eight- 
eenth centuries.  Size,  11  feet  2  by  17  feet.  Lent  by  WilHam 
Baumgarten  &  Company. 

16.  ASCANIUS  ON  MOUNT  IDA,  richly  colored  Renaissance 
tapestry,  woven  in  the  middle  of  the  sixteenth  century  at  Brussels. 
The  story  and  inscription  are  taken  from  Virgil's  Aeneid,  where 
Venus  removes  Ascanius  from  Carthage  in  order  that  Cupid  at  the 
banquet  given  by  Dido  to  Aeneas,  father  of  Ascanius,  may  secretly 
inspire  Dido  with  love  for  her  famous  guest.  The  inscription  reads 
translated:  "By  magic  art  the  boy  Ascanius  is  hidden  far  away  in 
the  grove  on  Mount  Ida."  Signed  by  Francois  Geubels.  Size,  1 1  feet 
II  by  8  feet  9.    Lent  by  WiUiam  Baumgarten  &  Company. 

17.  RENAISSANCE  ARMORIAL.  An  interesting  tapestry  with 
rich  swags  of  flowers  and  fruit,  and  lively  cockatoos,  but  with  border 
of  later  date.  The  inscription  filled  out  reads  translated:  "Wisdom 
is  less  than  fate."  Size,  9  feet  i  by  6  feet  10.  Lent  by  WilHam  G. 
Mather. 

18.  HAGAR  IN  THE  DESERT,  a  Renaissance  tapestry  picturing 
the  Bible  story  of  Hagar  and  her  child,  Ishmael,  who  because  of  the 
jealousy  of  Abraham's  wife,  Sarah,  were  turned  out  on  the  Desert 
to  die.  Size,  7  feet  9  by  5  feet  i.  Lent  by  H.  G.  Dalton. 

19.  CHILDREN  OF  NIOBE.  One  of  the  magnificent  Diana 
tapestries,  rich  with  gold  and  silver,  designed  by  Toussaint  Dubreuil, 
and  woven  at  the  Gobelins  before  it  became  a  state  institution  in 
1667.  Tapestry  weaving  had  been  estabHshed  at  the  GobeHn  sixty 
years  before,  under  the  protection  of  the  French  King  Henri  IV,  by 
the  Flemish  tapestry  manufacturers,  Comans  and  Planche. 

The  tapestry  before  us  was  woven  about  1620  by  Hans  Tayer, 
whose  monogram  appears  in  the  right  selvage.  The  scene  depicted 
is  where  Apollo  and  Diana  in  the  sky,  on  account  of  the  insult  of- 
fered to  their  mother,  Latona,  by  Niobe,  let  loose  their  fatal  arrows 
from  the  sky  against  her  seven  sons  and  seven  daughters,  killing  all 


20 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


and  breaking  the  heart  and  the  spirit  of  the  unfortunate  mother. 
Size,  13  feet  by  16  feet  9.    Lent  by  Jacques  SeHgmann,  of  Paris. 

20.  THE  GREAT  CONDE,  a  tapestry  of  great  historical  impor- 
tance, and  of  Gobehn  quahty  and  texture,  although  probably 
woven  at  one  of  the  French  plants  not  annexed  to  the  Gobehns 
until  two  or  three  years  later.  The  tapestry  was  put  on  the  loom, 
as  the  dates  on  the  bottom  selvage  show,  in  the  year  1659  and  com- 
pleted in  the  year  1664.  It  was  formerly  thought  that  the  subject 
was  Louis  XIII  Receiving  Absolution,  but  I  have  identified  the  real 
subject,  which  is  **The  Submission  of  Prince  Conde"  to  the  youthful 
King  Louis  XIV.  The  former  was  called  the  Great  Conde  because 
of  his  successful  generalship  in  the  wars  waged  by  France.  For 
several  years,  however,  before  the  scene  here  illustrated,  he  had 
been  fighting  on  the  side  of  the  Spaniards  against  his  native  country, 
and  it  was  one  of  the  provisions  of  the  Peace  of  the  Pyrenees  made 
in  1659  between  France  and  Spain,  that  Prince  Conde  should  make 
submission,  and  also  be  pardoned  and  restored  to  his  positions  of 
honor  by  Louis  XIV.  Conde  was  himself  a  Bourbon,  and  conse- 
quently has  his  robe  adorned  with  the  Bourbon  fleurs-de-lis,but  his  coat 
of  arms  was  not  three  fleurs-de-lis  on  a  shield,  like  that  of  the  elder 
line  to  which  Louis  XIV  belonged,  but  that  of  the  younger  Hne  of 
Bourbons,  three  fleurs-de-Hs  with  a  bar  sinister  super-posed,  as  illus- 
trated in  the  top  border  of  this  tapestry.  Later  I  hope  to  have  the 
opportunity  to  go  fully  into  the  attribution  of  the  tapestry,  and  in- 
terpret the  two  monograms  in  the  lower  corners,  as  well  as  the  ini- 
tials high  up  in  each  of  the  borders.  Size,  10  feet  7  by  15  feet  6. 
Lent  by  Howard  P.  Eells. 

21.  PSYCHE  CARRIED  Tp  THE  MOUNTAINS,  a  tapestry 
woven  at  or  near  Paris  in  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  century,  and 
similar  in  character  to  No.  20.  The  design  of  the  panel  is  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  and  attributed  by  some  to  Michel  Coxcie.  This 
tapestry  is  one  of  three  picturing  scenes  from  the  famous  story  that 
was  first  published  to  the  world  in  the  days  of  ancient  Rome  by 
Apuleius  in  his  "Golden  Ass."  Psyche  was  the  youngest  and  most 
beautiful  of  three  sisters,  but  nevertheless  no  one  asked  her  hand  in 
marriage,  because  she  had  incurred  the  hostility  of  Venus.  When 
her  parents  in  their  distress  consulted  the  oracle  of  Apollo,  the 
oracle  answered:  "The  virgin  is  destined  for  the  bride  of  no  mortal 
lover.  Her  future  husband  awaits  her  on  the  top  of  the  mountain. 
He  is  a  monster  whom  neither  gods  nor  men  can  resist."  The  tapes- 
try before  us  shows  Psyche  carried  in  solemn  procession,  with  musi- 
cians ahead  and  her  grieving  parents  behind.  Of  course,  the  mon- 
ster on  top  of  the  mountain  turns  out  to  be  Cupid  himself,  and  the 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


21 


more  familiar  part  of  the  story  follows.  Size,  lo  feet  3  by  17  feet  8. 
Lent  by  Jacques  Seligmann,  of  Paris. 

22.  FLORA,  the  Goddess  of  Spring,  one  of  the  brilliant  tapestries 
woven  at  Brussels  during  the  reign  of  the  French  king,  Louis  XIV, 
and  commonly  called  "Louis  XIV  Brussels."  Size,  10  feet  9  by  14 
feet.    Lent  by  William  Baumgarten  &  Company. 

23.  ACHILLES,  another  Louis  XIV  Brussels  tapestry  of  strong 
composition  and  brilliant  coloration.  The  scene  depicted  is  that  of 
Achilles  discovered  by  Ulysses  among  the  daughters  of  Lycomedes, 
where  he  had  been  sent  by  his  mother, Thetis,  and  dressed  in  girl's 
clothing,  in  order  to  prevent  him  from  being  compelled  to  go  to  the 
Trojan  War.  Size,  12  feet  i  by  16  feet  10.  Lent  by  WiUiam 
Baumgarten  &  Company. 

24.  SATYR  AND  NYMPH,  a  tapestry  woven  in  France  during 
the  period  of  Louis  XIV,  of  high  quaUty  and  interesting  design. 
Size,  10  feet  11  by  8  feet.    Lent  by  L.  Alavoine  &  Company. 

25.  DON  QUIXOTE  KILLING  SHEEP,  a  tapestry  woven  at 
Brussels  in  the  eighteenth  century  by  Urbain  Leyniers,  who  signed 
it  in  the  lower  corner  of  the  panel.  The  story  can,  of  course,  be 
found  in  Cervantes'  famous  chivalric  romance.  Size,  10  feet  i  by 
10  feet  10.    Lent  by  Mrs.  E.  W.  Haines. 

26.  SANCHO  PANZA,  companion  piece  to  No.  25,  and  made  by 
the  same  weaver.  The  scene  shows  Sancho  Panza  being  tossed  in 
a  blanket,  much  to  his  disgust.  Size,  10  feet  by  17  feet.  Prop- 
erty of  the  Museum,  given  by  Mrs.  E.  W.  Haines. 

27.  28.    SEASONS  OF  LUCAS,  WINTER  AND  SPRING,  two 

of  a  set  of  four  tapestries  rich  with  gold,  designed  in  the  first  part 
of  the  sixteenth  century  by  Lucas  van  Leyden,  and  woven  in  the 
first  part  of  the  eighteenth  century  at  the  Gobelins  for  a  private 
purchaser.  It  is  interesting  to  compare  these  ''Seasons  of  Lucas" 
with  the  six  "Months  of  Lucas,"  Nos.  29-34.  The  set  of  which  the 
tapestries  before  us  are  part  came  from  Balloch  Castle,  near  Edin- 
burgh, in  Scotland.  Of  this  set  William  D.  Thomson,  author  of  the 
great  British  history  of  tapestry,  wrote  in  191 5,  "It  would  be  a 
national  loss  if  the  set  at  Balloch  Castle  ever  had  to  leave  the 
country."  Sizes,  "Winter,"  8  feet  by  12  feet  8;  "Spring,"  8  feet  3 
by  8  feet  8.    Lent  by  Warwick  House. 

29.  MONTHS  OF  LUCAS,  MAY,  the  only  Gobelin  tapestry 
owned  in  Cleveland.    Like  Nos.  30-34,  it  was  woven  and  signed  by 


22 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


Audran,  after  the  sixteenth  century  design  of  Lucas  van  Leyden, 
but  with  an  eighteenth  century  border.  Size,  lo  feet  3  by  15  feet  3. 
Lent  by  Mrs.  F.  F.  Prentiss. 

30-34.  MONTHS  OF  LUCAS,  JANUARY,  MARCH,  APRIL, 
SEPTEMBER,  OCTOBER.  Five  tapestries  out  of  a  series  of 
twelve  designed  about  1530  by  Lucas  van  Leyden,  and  woven  at  the 
Gobelins  in  the  eighteenth  century,  with  eighteenth  century  bor- 
ders, for  the  Count  of  Toulouse,  on  high  warp  looms  in  the  shop  of 
Michel  Audran,  whose  signature  appears  in  the  lower  right  corner 
of  the  panel.  This  is  by  far  the  finest  of  several  sets  of  Months  of 
Lucas  woven  at  the  Gobelins.  The  monogram  in  the  lower  corners 
of  the  different  pieces  is  the  A  of  Alexandre,  Count  of  Toulouse. 
After  his  death  the  tapestries  were  placed  in  the  Palace  of  Fontaine- 
bleau  as  part  of  the  Royal  collection,  and  were  sold  in  1852  as  part 
of  the  possessions  of  Louis  Philippe,  deposed  King  of  France.  Later 
they  became  part  of  the  collection  of  Lady  Somerset  and  hung  in 
Eastnor  Castle,  Herefordshire,  until  acquired  by  the  present  own- 
ers. On  pages  325  and  327  of  Latham's  *Tn  English  Homes"  the 
tapestries  are  shown  in  position  on  the  walls  of  the  Library  of 
Eastnor  Castle.  Added  interest  is  given  to  the  Months  of  Lucas  by 
the  recent  discovery  by  myself  of  the  long-forgotten  fact  that  the 
two  principal  personages  portrayed  are  the  Emperor  Charles  I  and 
his  wife,  Isabella  of  Spain,  whom  he  married  in  1526,  shortly  before 
the  tapestries  were  designed. 

At  this  point  I  should  like  to  say  that  to  speak  of  Charles  V  as 
a  German  Emperor  is  misleading.  His  grandfather  and  predeces- 
sor was  Emperor  Maximilian,  whose  hereditary  title  was  Archduke 
of  Austria.  But  Charles  was  also  the  grandson  of  Mary  of  Bur- 
gundy, and  was  born  and  brought  up  in  Flanders,  and  his  native 
language  was  French.  Spain  and  the  vast  colonial  possessions  of 
Spain  in  America  and  the  East  Indies  were  inherited  from  his 
mother;  Burgundy,  that  is  to  say  the  Netherlands  (Belgium  and 
Holland),  with  all  their  tapestry  looms,  from  his  grandmother, 
Mary,  through  his  father,  Philip  the  Handsome;  Austria,  from  his 
grandfather,  Maximilian.  Emperor  of  what  is  now  the  Central 
Empires  he  became  by  election.  His  possessions  were  more  vast 
than  those  of  any  ruler  since  the  ancient  Roman  Empire. 

January  is  distinguished  by  the  fact  that  in  it  the  Emperor 
Charles  and  the  Empress  Isabella  appear  three  times,  and  that  the 
floor  tiles  are  adorned  with  the  double-headed  eagle  of  the  Holy 
Roman  Empire,  so  called  because  it  was  neither  Holy  nor  Roman. 
Each  of  the  three  Charles  carries  a  torch,  and  each  of  the  three 
Isabellas  an  arrow.  The  figure  at  the  back  of  the  hall  is  a  Roman 
God,  the  two-faced  Janus  who  ushers  out  the  Old  Year  with  one 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


23 


face,  and  ushers  in  the  New  Year  with  the  other  face,  holding  over 
the  head  of  the  sleeping  woman  who  symbolizes  the  Old  Year  the 
symbol  of  Eternity,  a  serpent  biting  its  tail.  The  lengths  of  the 
five  tapestries  are:  No.  30,  January,  10  feet  4;  No.  31,  March,  15 
feet  4;  No.  32,  April,  7  feet  ii;  No.  33,  September,  15  feet  6;  No. 

34.  October,  7  feet  9.  The  Toulouse  Months  of  Lucas  are  lent  by 
Duveen  Brothers. 

35.  THE  VILLAGE  MARKET,  a  large  and  effective  composition 
designed  by  Etienne  Jeaurat,  and  woven  at  the  Gobelins  on  the  high 
warp  looms  of  Michel  Audran.  The  tapestry  before  us  is  from  the 
collection  of  the  Duke  of  Bisaccia,  inherited  from  the  collection  of 
his  great-great-grandfather,  the  Duke  of  Laval-Montmorency 
(1723-98),  Marshal  of  France,  and  First  Gentleman  of  the  Chamber 
of  Monsieur.  The  scene  on  the  left  shows  a  recruiting  sergeant 
busy  at  his  task,  while  on  the  right  is  the  market  with  buildings  and 
peddlers,  girls  dancing,  children  at  the  wheel  of  fortune,  and  a  quack 
doctor  holding  up  a  printed  placard,  with  a  negro  assistant.  Size, 
9  feet  4  by  18  feet  9.    Lent  by  Gimpel  &  Wildenstein. 

36.  CUPID  AND  PSYCHE,  a  tapestry  woven  at  the  Gobelins  in 
1792  by  CozetteFils,  who  signed  it  and  dated  it.  M.  MoHnier,  the 
Director  of  the  Louvre,  wrote  of  the  duplicate  there:  "The  composi- 
tion is  absolutely  theatrical,  and  ranks  among  the  most  beautiful. 
Cupid  is  less  the  kind  of  Cupid  that  antiquity  conceives,  and  more 
the  actor  who  is  playing  a  gracious  role."  The  scene  is  from 
Moliere's  **Psiche,"  and  shows  Cupid  on  a  bed  asleep,  with  an  arrow 
in  his  right  hand,  while  Psyche  regards  him  by  the  light  of  an  ancient 
Roman  hand  lamp.  Psyche  has  been  persuaded  by  her  jealous  sis- 
ters that  her  husband,  who  visits  her  only  by  night  and  whose  face 
neither  she  nor  any  of  her  family  has  seen,  is  the  awful  monster 
foretold  by  the  oracle,  who  shuns  the  light  because  of  his  ugliness. 
They  have  persuaded  her  that  it  is  her  duty  to  destroy  him  as  he 
sleeps.  So  Psyche  takes  the  dagger  and  enters  the  nuptial  bower 
where  Cupid  slumbers.  Her  surprise  and  delight  at  finding  divine 
beauty  instead  of  deformity  are  revealed  in  her  countenance.  Size, 
12  feet  2  by  9  feet  11.    Lent  by  Lewis  &  Simmons. 

37.  VERTUMNUS  AND  POMONA,  one  of  the  most  perfect 
Beauvais-Bouchers  in  existence.  It  is  illustrated  in  color  as  the 
frontispiece  of  my  book  on  tapestries,  and  there  described.  Size, 
II  feet  by  8  feet  10.    Lent  by  Gimpel  &  Wildenstein. 

38.  EUROPA,  another  of  the  exquisitely  gentle  and  graceful 
tapestries  designed  by  Francois  Boucher,  and  woven  at  Beauvais, 
and  consequently  called  Beauvais-Bouchers.    These  are  the  finest 


24 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


tapestries  of  the  eighteenth  century,  even  excelling  most  of  the 
Gobelins.  The  story  is,  of  course,  that  of  the  transformation  of 
Jupiter  into  a  white  bull  in  order  to  swim  away  across  the  Hellespont 
with  the  beautiful  maiden,  Europa.  Size,  ii  feet  by  8  feet  lo. 
Lent  by  Gimpel  &  Wildenstein. 

39.  THE  FORTUNE  TELLER,  another  Beauvais-Boucher,  su- 
perior in  quality  and  condition.  Size,  lo  feet  lo  by  lo  feet  lo. 
Lent  by  Duveen  Brothers. 

40.  BACCHUS  AND  ARIADNE,  still  another  Beauvais-Boucher 
of  marvelous  beauty.  Size,  ii  feet  7  by  ii  feet  3.  Lent  by 
Duveen  Brothers. 

41.  THE  BATTLE,  one  of  a  pair  of  tapestries  designed  by  Fran- 
gois  Casanova,  and  woven  at  Beauvais  in  the  last  half  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  The  scene  is  a  stirring  one,  and  of  course 
especially  timely  just  now.  Size,  10  feet  4  by  13  feet  2.  Lent  by 
Gimpel  &  Wildenstein. 

42.  RUSSIAN  PICNIC,  one  of  the  famous  series  of  pictures  of 
Russian  life,  designed  hy  Leprince,  and  woven  at  Beauvais  in  1778. 
The  tapestry  is  signed  A.  C.  C,  the  initials  of  Andre  Charlemagne 
Charron,  who  was  the  proprietor  of  the  Beauvais  works  at  the  time. 
This  is  a  very  rare  and  important  piece.  Size,  8  feet  5  by  23  feet  4. 
Lent  by  L.  Alavoine  &  Company. 

43.  CHINESE  FAIR,  one  of  the  Chinese  series  designed  by 
Frangois  Boucher  and  presented  by  command  of  the  French  king, 
Louis  XV,  to  the  Emperor  of  China,  Kien-Lung.  The  other  five 
pieces  of  the  set  are  said  to  be  still  in  China  and  to  be  part  of  the 
treasures  of  the  Peking  Museum.  This  is  the  only  Beauvais- 
Boucher  tapestry  owned  in  Cleveland,  fin  the  center  a  Chinese  lady 
sits  in  a  canopied  wheel  chair.  High  on  a  platform  behind  her  two 
Chinese  jugglers,  one  solemnly  reading  an  announcement  to  the 
public,  while  the  other  holds  a  snake  whose  outstretched  mouth 
grasps  the  rim  of  the  unsuspecting  "barker's"  hat.  On  the  left,  a 
bird  merchant,  leaning  on  one  of  his  cages,  while  his  little  boy 
fingers  a  flute,  and  a  noble  personage  with  elaborate  hat  and  cos- 
tume counts  out  money,  evidently  to  pay  for  a  purchase.  On  the 
ground  four  birds  perch  upon  a  revolving  wheel  beside  a  covered 
vase  and  saucers  of  exquisite  color.  In  the  distance  a  Chinese 
gateway  with  tower.  A  httle  nearer,  on  the  extreme  right,  an  ele- 
phant with  rider.  Still  nearer,  a  cavalier  and  a  crowd  of  the  curious. 
Over  the  head  of  the  juggler  who  makes  the  announcement  a  slen- 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


25 


der,  triangular  banner  bearing  the  Chinese  dragon.  This  tapestry- 
is  as  fresh  and  vivid  as  the  day  it  came  from  the  loom,  having  been 
preserved  for  one  hundred  and  fifty  years  in  the  box  which  con- 
veyed it  from  Beauvais  to  Peking.  It  is  a  masterpiece  of  intricate 
and  intelligent  coloration  of  the  kind  inspired  by  Chinese  porcelains 
and  Chinese  silk  brocades,  and  illustrates  the  possibilities  of  blues 
and  greens.  Size,  10  feet  7  by  10  feet  3.  Lent  by  Mrs.  F.  F. 
Prentiss. 

44,  45.  PLAYING  BALL,  and  DANCING,  two  tapestries  out  of 
a  charming  set  of  eight  designed  by  Jean  Baptiste  Huet,  and  woven 
at  Aubusson  about  1775.  Among  tapestries  suitable  in  size  and 
subject  for  the  average  American  house  this  set  is  unique.  It 
excels  in  those  decorative  qualities  which  so  happily  differentiate 
many  tapestries  from  most  paintings,  and  make  a  house  a  home 
instead  of  a  museum.  In  ^'Playing  Ball"  it  is  not  foot  or  bat  which 
propels  the  ball,  but  the  right  hand  assisted  by  a  heavy  brassard. 
The  ball  itself  is  large  and  of  leather,  and  inflated  with  air  by  the 
bellows,  which  is  plainly  shown.  In  ''Dancing,'*  two  couples  dance 
while  two  musicians  in  the  foreground  play,  one  the  flute  and  the 
other  the  drum.  The  latter  performer  is  consoled  by  the  compan- 
ionship of  a  very  flirtatious-looking  young  lady.  Sizes:  ''Playing 
Ball,"  9  feet  10  by  8  feet  i;  "Dancing,"  9  feet  5  by  10  feet.  Lent 
by  William  Baumgarten  &  Company. 

46,  47.  FISHING,  and  HARBpR  SCENE,  two  Aubusson  tapes- 
tries of  the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth  century  in  the  style  of 
Vernet.  Not  monumental  or  magnificent,  but  charming  and  grace- 
ful, and  altogether  dehghtful.  Sizes:  "Fishing,"  8  feet  by  7  feet  10; 
"Harbor  Scene,"  7  feet  7  by  7  feet.  Lent  by  L.  Alavoine  &  Com- 
pany. 

48.  OUDRY  VERDURE,  one  of  the  most  pleasing  verdures  of 
the  eighteenth  century  type,  made  vivid  by  animals  in  the  style  of 
Oudry,  who  had  the  good  fortune  not  only  to  bring  back  to  pros- 
perity the  weaving  of  tapestries  at  Beauvais  in  the  second  quarter 
of  the  eighteenth  century,  principally  by  employing  Frangois 
Boucher  to  make  designs  for  the  Beauvais  works,  but  who  also  be- 
came artistic  director  of  the  Gobelins.  Size,  9  feet  3  by  15  feet  8. 
Lent  by  WilHam  Baumgarten  &  Company. 

49.  ^  FORTUNE  TELLERS,  a  tapestry  woven  in  England  at  the 
beginning  of  the  eighteenth  century  by  a  weaver  probably  trained 
at  the  famous  Mortlake  works,  which  had  been  established  in  the 
first  quarter  of  the  seventeenth  century  but  were  abandoned  in 
1702.    Size,  7  feet  6  by  6  feet  5.    Lent  by  Dawson. 


26 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


50.  VENUS  AND  CUPID,  a  large-leaf  verdure  tapestry  woven  at 
Enghien  in  the  sixteenth  century.  Venus  and  Cupid  are  shown  at 
the  top  of  the  tapestry,  illustrating  the  passage  from  Virgil  quoted 
below  in  Latin  which,  translated,  reads: 

"Let  Venus  herself  appear  and  the  cupids  quickly  follow."  Size, 
lo  feet  7  by  lo  feet  ii.    Lent  by  Howard  P.  Eells, 

51-56.  DIDO  AND  AENEAS.  Six  out  of  a  set  of  eight  impressive 
and  interesting  Italian  tapestries  woven  in  the  first  half  of  the 
seventeenth  century  in  Florence  by  M.  Wauters,  who  signed  them. 
The  signature  of  /.  F.  Romanellus  (Romanelli)  appears  on  one  of 
them.  They  were  woven  at  the  Barberini  Palace  in  Rome,  and 
remained  there  until  Charles  M.  Ffoulke,  by  bringing  to  America 
the  huge  Barberini  collection  of  tapestries,  rendered  his  native 
country  a  distinguished  service.  The  average  height  of  the  series 
is  13  feet  5,  and  the  subjects  of  the  tapestries  in  the  Garden  Court, 
with  lengths,  are  as  follows:  No.  51,  Cupid  and  Dido,  20  feet  10; 
No.  52,  Plans  of  Carthage,  18  feet  6;  No.  53,  Pursued  by  Cupid, 
13  feet  9;  No.  54,  Mercury  and  Aeneas,  11  feet;  No.  55,  The  Part- 
ing, 13  feet;  No.  56,  Death  of  Dido,  15  feet  4.  The  Dido  and 
Aeneas  set  is  the  property  of  the  Museum,  given  by  Mrs.  F.  F. 
Prentiss,  in  memory  of  Dr.  Dudley  P.  Allen. 

57.  CHILDREN  PLAYING,  an  Italian  tapestry,  woven  at  the 
Barberini  works  in  Rome  in  the  first  half  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury. It  is  one  of  the  series  designed  by  Raphael's  pupil,  Giovanni 
d'Udine,  for  Pope  Leo  X,  but  the  tapestries  woven  from  the  cartoons 
in  Flanders  in  the  sixteenth  century  were  lost  during  the  siege  and 
capture  of  Rome  in  1 527.  The  tapestry  before  us  was  formerly  part 
of  the  collection  of  the  Princess  Mathilde,  in  the  catalogue  of  whose 
sale  at  Paris  in  1904  it  was  illustrated  as  No.  448.  Size,  10  feet  by 
9  feet  I.    Lent  by  Dawson. 

58.  MEDICI  ARMORIAL,  a  tapestry  bearing  the  Medici  coat  of 
arms,  woven  at  the  Medici  works  in  Florence  during  the  first  half 
of  the  seventeenth  century.  Size,  8  feet  by  5  feet  11.  Lent  by 
Howard  P.  Eells. 

59.  SPANISH  ARMORIAL,  with  the  Spanish  inscription:  ''Mas 
vale,''  meaning  ''It  is  better."  Not  important  but  interesting,  and 
probably  woven  in  Spain.  Size,  3  feet  9  by  4  feet  5.  Lent  by 
Howard  P.  Eells. 

60.  HUNTING  SCENE,  showing  two  mounted  huntsmen  with 
their  attendants  returning  from  their  sport.    Woven  at  Aubusson 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


27 


in  the  latter  half  of  the  eighteenth  century.  Size,  5  feet  10  by  6  feet 
4.    Lent  by  Myron  T.  Herrick. 

61,  62.  GARDEN  OF  LOVE,  two  long  and  narrow  Renaissance 
tapestries,  woven  for  use  as  friezes.  Made  in  Flanders  in  the  six- 
teenth century.  Sizes,  6  feet  4  by  12  feet  2;  5  feet  11  by  10  feet  6. 
Lent  by  Myron  T.  Herrick. 

63.  LARGE-LEAF  VERDURE.  Woven  at  Enghien  in  the  six- 
teenth century.  One  of  the  type  commonly  called  Gothic  by  the 
trade,  but  sometimes  labeled  in  museums  as  Italian  seventeenth  cen- 
tury, incorrectly  in  both  cases.  Size,  12  feet  2  by  8  feet  5.  Lent  by 
L.  Alavoine  &  Company. 

64.  MILLE  FLEUR  SCREEN,  a  delightful  piece  of  color  of  ex- 
cellent quality,  woven  near  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century  in 
Flanders.    Size,  2  feet  2  by  2  feet  6.    Lent  by  W.  G.  Mather. 

65.  TAPESTRY  COURTSHIP,  a  tiny  but  interesting  seventeenth 
century  English  tapestry,  containing  five  scenes.  Lent  by  W.  G. 
Mather. 

66.  VERDURE  TAPESTRY,  one  of  the  kind  justly  popular  for 
purely  decorative  use.  Woven  at  Brussels  in  the  first  half  of  the 
eighteenth  century.  Size,  8  feet  7  by  4  feet  10.  Lent  by  W.  G. 
Mather. 

67.  ALEXANDER  ENTERING  BABYLON,  a  tapestry  \voven 
at  Aubusson  by  A.  Grellet^  whose  signature  it  bears.  The  design  is 
that  of  one  of  the  Great  Alexander  Series,  designed  by  Charles 
Lebrun  for  Louis  XIV,  woven  magnificently  at  the  GobeHns,  and 
copied  well  at  Brussels  and  badly  at  Aubusson.  Property  of  the 
Museum,  bequest  of  Liberty  E.  Holden. 

68.  69.    ROMEO  AND  JULIET  and  THE  TEMPEST.  Two 

modern  American  tapestries  on  Shakespearean  subjects,  out  of  a  set 
of  five  designed  by  Albert  Herter  and  woven  at  the  Herter  Looms 
in  New  York.  An  interesting  attempt  to  get  away  from  the  copy- 
ing of  old  tapestries.  Height,  9  feet  3,  and  lengths,  16  feet  6  and 
5  feet  6,  respectively.    Lent  by  The  Herter  Looms. 

70.  BOUCHER  PASTORALE,  one  of  the  finest  tapestries  ever 
woven  in  America,  following  closely  the  style  and  texture  of  Beau- 
vais-Bouchers.  Size,  9  feet  by  10  feet  6.  Lent  by  William  Baum- 
garten  &  Company. 


28 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


71.  GOLD  CHAIR  BACK,  with  cartoon,  a  modern  tapestry,  rich 
with  gold,  woven  under  my  personal  direction,  in  the  texture  of  the 
sixteenth  century,  and  in  a  design  copied  from  one  of  the  compart- 
ments of  the  wide  and  splendid  borders  designed  by  Giulio  Romano 
for  the  Spanish  series  of  the  famous  Acts  of  the  Apostles  set  designed 
by  Raphael  for  Pope  Leo  X.  Lent  by  William  Baumgarten  &  Com- 
pany. 

72.  COLOR  SKETCH,  from  which  were  made  cartoons  for  the 
tapestries  woven  for  the  upper  hall  of  the  residence  of  Charles  M. 
Schwab,  Riverside  Drive,  New  York  City.  Lent  by  William 
Baumgarten  &  Company. 

73.  MODELS  OF  HIGH  WARP  AND  LOW  WARP  LOOMS. 
Gift  of  William  Baumgarten  &  Company. 

74.  COLOR  SKETCHES  of  the  two  famous  Beauvais-Bouchers, 
"Bird  Catchers,"  and  ''Fountain  of  Love."  Lent  by  WilHam 
Baumgarten  &  Company. 

75.  ADORATION  OF  THE  MAGI,  a  modern  tapestry,  the  mid- 
dle section  of  one  of  a  set  of  five,  designed  and  woven  for  the  Queen 
of  All  Saints  Church  in  Brooklyn,  N.  Y.  Size,  lo  feet  by  ii  feet. 
Lent  by  the  Edgewater  Tapestry  Looms. 

76.  THREE  OF  THE  COLOR  SKETCHES  for  the  set  of  which 
No.  77  is  a  part.    Lent  by  the  Edgewater  Tapestry  Looms. 

77.  SHEPHERDESS,  a  modern  American  mille  fleur,  with  per- 
sonage. Size,  5  feet  by  6  feet.  Lent  by  the  Edgewater  Tapestry 
Looms. 

78.  PETIT  POINT  PILLOW  COVERS  in  real  tapestry,  but  in 
the  style  of  needle  work,  part  of  the  design  being  in  coarse  stitch, 
and  part  in  fine  stitch,  a  result  accomplished  by  the  use  of  double 
warps.    Lent  by  the  Edgewater  Tapestry  Looms. 

79.  SAMPLES  OF  MODERN  AMERICAN  TAPESTRY,  show- 
ing great  ingenuity  in  the  development  of  different  loom  effects 
and  in  the  accompHshment  of  pleasing  texture  at  minimum  cost. 
Lent  by  the  Edgewater  Tapestry  Looms. 

80.  FIRST  TAPESTRY  MADE  IN  AMERICA.  Lent  by 
William  Baumgarten  &  Company. 


81.    COPTIC  TAPESTRIES.    Property  of  the  Museum. 


LOAN  EXHIBITION  OF  TAPESTRIES 


29 


82.  MEXI  CAN  SERAPE.  Property  of  the  Museum,  gift  of  Mrs. 
Andrew  Squire. 

83.  NAVAJO  BLANKET.  Property  of  the  Museum,  gift  of  Mrs. 
L.  E.  Holden. 

84.  ORIENTAL  KELIM.  Property  of  the  Museum,  gift  of  J.  H. 
Wade. 

85.  DON  QUIXOTE  BANQUETED,  a  tapestry  woven  at  Brus- 
sels in  the  eighteenth  century  by  Urbain  Leyniers,  who  signed  it. 
Part  of  the  same  set  as  Nos.  25  and  26  and  one  of  seven  brought 
from  Mexico  in  1848  by  Daniel  Coit.  Size,  10  feet  by  17  feet. 
Lent  by  Mrs.  E.  W.  Haines. 

86.  FLIGHT  INTO  EGYPT,  a  late  Gothic  tapestry  made  by 
French-Flemish  weavers  in  the  last  quarter  of  the  fifteenth  century. 
Like  the  famous  "Coronation  of  the  Virgin"  at  the  Cathedral  of  Sens, 
which  it  resembles,  it  has  three  scenes,  the  "Flight  into  Egypt"  in 
the  middle  being  preceded  in  the  left  by  the  "Massacre  of  the  Inno- 
cents," and  followed  on  the  right  by  "Jesus  Among  the  Doctors." 

The  middle  scene  that,  like  the  other  two  scenes,  is  framed  in 
Gothic  jeweled  columns  with  hexagonal  bases,  pictures  the  story 
not  only  as  told  in  the  Bible: 

"And  when  the  wise  men  were  departed,  behold,  the  angel  of 
the  Lord  appeareth  to  Joseph  in  a  dream,  saying.  Arise,  and  take  the 
young  child  and  his  mother,  and  flee  unto  Egypt,  and  be  thou  there 
until  I  bring  thee  word:  for  Herod  will  seek  the  young  child,  to  de- 
stroy him.  When  he  arose  he  took  the  young  child  and  his  mother 
by  night,  and  departed  into  Egypt." 

But  also  as  amplified  in  legendary  history: 

"When  it  was  discovered  that  the  Holy  Family  had  fled  from 
Bethlehem,  Herod  sent  his  officers  in  pursuit  of  them.  And  it  hap- 
pened that  when  the  Holy  Family  had  traveled  some  distance,  they 
came  to  a  field  where  a  farmer  was  sowing  wheat.  And  the  Virgin 
said  to  the  farmer: 

"If  any  shall  ask  you  whether  we  passed  this  way,  ye  shall 
answer:  Such  persons  passed  this  way  when  I  was  sowing  this 
wheat.  For  the  Holy  Virgin  was  too  wise  and  too  good  to  save  her 
Son  by  instructing  the  man  to  tell  a  falsehood. 

"But  behold,  a  miracle!  By  the  power  of  the  Infant  Saviour, 
in  the  space  of  a  single  night  the  seed  sprang  up  into  stalk,  blade 
and  ear,  fit  for  the  sickle.  And  the  next  morning  when  the  officers 
of  Herod  came  up,  and  inquired  of  the  farmer,  saying: 

"Have  you  seen  an  old  man  with  a  woman  and  child  traveling 
this  way? 


30 


THE  CLEVELAND  MUSEUM  OF  ART 


"The  farmer,  who  was  reaping  his  wheat,  in  great  wonder  and 
admiration,  replied;  Yes. 

**And  they  asked  him:  How  long  since? 

"And  he  answered:  When  I  was  sowing  this  wheat. 

"Whereupon  the  officers  of  Herod  turned  back,  and  left  off 
pursuing  the  Holy  Family." 

Very  clearly  is  it  all  pictured:  the  farmer  in  the  distance  sowing 
his  wheat;  and  on  the  left,  reaping  the  miraculously  grown  wheat 
which  almost  hides  the  mounted  Roman  soldiers,  while  in  the  fore- 
ground Mary  and  the  Infant  pursue  the  even  tenor  of  their  way, 
seated  upon  a  large-eared  donkey,  and  Joseph,  with  basket  in  right 
hand  and  bundle  pendant  from  a  rough  cane  swung  over  his  left 
shoulder,  regards  his  bride  anxiously. 

Another  favorite  legend  connected  with  the  Flight  into  Egypt 
is  that  upon  the  approach  of  the  Holy  Child  the  idols  of  the 
Egyptians  fell  to  the  ground.  In  the  upper  right  corner  of  our  tap- 
estry one  of  these  idols  is  seen  toppling  from  his  pedestal,  with 
broken  standard  still  clasped  in  his  right  hand. 

The  effect  of  the  tapestry  as  a  whole  is  heightened  by  the  mille 
fleur  border  below,  and  woven  fringe  above  which  takes  the  place  of 
the  usual  plain  hatchings. 

Size,  3  feet  4  by  7  feet  8.    Lent  by  John  L.  Severance. 


GETTY  CENTER  LIBRARY 


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